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Leicester City tried and failed in an attempt to sign a Harry Maguire replacement, according to reports.

Championat claim (via Sport Witness) that the Foxes attempted to go after Solomon Kvirkvelia from Lokomotiv Moscow; however, it is claimed by his agent that the player rejected the club.

Mamuka Dzguheli, Kvirkvelia’s agent said: “Leicester offered €10m for Solomon but he rejected it because he wants to become a champion with Lokomotiv. He said he wanted to stay at the club for the time being.

“He feels he has a debt to pay to the club and the staff. He believes he will still get great offers after the end of this season.”

The Georgia international joined from Rubin Kazan in 2017.

With Leicester selling Harry Maguire for a world-record transfer fee for a defender (£80m), there was much anticipation to see whether they would reinvest that money into finding a new centre-back. Despite showing interest in Nathan Ake and James Tarkowski (Leicester Mercury), it was claimed that they were priced out for either defender, with Bournemouth and Burnley asking for £75m and £40m respectively.

Eventually, the club opted to stick with Caglar Soyuncu, who they bought the previous summer from Freiburg. And so far, it has paid off. The Turkish defender has played every game this season and averages a healthy 7.28/10 rating on WhoScored – the fourth highest of the entire squad. Additionally, he has averaged 4.5 aerial duels won per game, the highest in the squad.

Kvirkvelia is clearly a top player in the Russian Premier League – he played every league game last season and had an average rating of 6.99. However, at 27 years of age Leicester already have younger options who are similarly inexperienced in the Premier League.

With Leicester having four decent centre-backs in their ranks, failing to sign Kvirkvelia is not the end of the world, as Soyuncu has really stepped up to the plate.

Leicester also have Filip Benkovic at their disposal. In the Croatian and Soyuncu, they have two young centre-backs for the future; if they signed Kvirkvelia – who is hardly young at 27 – that may have prevented them from developing.

Leicester fans, how do you feel about missing out on Kvirkvelia? Comment below!

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Tottenham Hotspur attacker Son Heung-min captained South Korea to a 2-0 win over Turkmenistan in their first 2022 World Cup qualifier on Tuesday.

Na Sangho and Jung Woo-young scored the goals for South Korea, who proved too strong for their hosts in the international affair.

There is absolutely no question that Son is an icon for his country, and it would be fair to say that he is also adored by the Tottenham faithful.

And a number of Spurs fans have taken to social media to comment on the 27-year-old’s latest international performance.

Whilst many lavished praise on the former Bayer Leverkusen forward, others simply said that they were glad that he had not picked up an injury.

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Indeed, Giovani Lo Celso is facing a period on the sidelines with the hip problem that he suffered whilst representing Argentina.

Son, however, seems fine ahead of this weekend’s clash with Crystal Palace.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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Mings said that he had a great experience during his time with the Three Lions, but the next part of his caption will be what many Aston Villa fans are really interested in.

The defender went on to say that he can’t wait to get back to the Midlands club and focus on the league.

This type of commitment will undoubtedly put him in the good books of many Villa supporters.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

Joe Willock has extended his contract with Arsenal, the club have confirmed.

What’s the story?

This year, the 20-year-old has forced his way into manager Unai Emery’s plans, having already featured in three of the first four Premier League matches of the campaign.

As such, he has been rewarded with a new deal by the Gunners.

While the length has not been revealed, it has been confirmed that it is long-term in nature.

How do football vloggers afford to watch their team week in, week out? Find out in the video below…

Another example of Arsenal’s young policy

It is an exciting time at Arsenal, especially for the club’s younger players. Willock putting pen to paper for the foreseeable future is just the latest example of this phenomenon.

Looking at the signings that were made during the summer transfer window, it is obvious that Emery and co have the future of the club in mind. Of the six new arrivals, only David Luiz is over 32. Even including the former Chelsea man, the signings had an average age of 22.66 at the time of joining.

The squad as a whole has a fresh and youthful look. There are just four players who are over 30 and Willock is not the only academy graduate to have received considerable playing time this term. Reiss Nelson and Ainsley Maitland-Niles, 19 and 22 respectively, have both started games. Also, Matteo Guendouzi, while not a former member of the club’s youth sides, is just 20 yet has been in the starting XI for every game this term.

It is also interesting to analyse the age of those who have departed the Emirates outfit recently. Alex Iwobi, at 23, was by far the youngest member of last term’s first-team squad to seek pastures new. The average age of Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Laurent Koscielny, Nacho Monreal, Stephan Lichtsteiner, Danny Welbeck, Aaron Ramsey and Mohamed Elneny is 30.7.

As such, it is obvious that the north London side’s hierarchy are prioritising a youthful approach. If Emery and his players are given time to grow into their roles, it could be a promising time ahead for Arsenal.

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[ad_pod ]Some Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter to react after an incredible statistic regarding Luka Milivojevic was brought to light by The Evening Standard’s Tom Dutton.The Eagles captain is the only Premier League outfield player to play every league minute possible since December 2017, missing just 159 top-flight minutes out of a total 6930 since Roy Hodgson took charge on 12th September 2017.

The Serbia international – who scored 12 league goals last term – is obviously a key player for the south Londoners, and there is simply no doubting his importance to the team. Fitness and availability is one of the most important traits a footballer can have, and the 28-year-old excels at being an ever-present for his side.

Two supporters below said that the former Olympiacos man may need a rest given the sheer amount of football he has played over the last two years, while another highlighted the fact that a one-game suspension is looming if the midfielder picks up one more yellow card – Milivojevic has amassed four bookings in just five league games so far this season, with five resulting in a one-game ban.

Let’s take a look at some more of the Twitter reaction…

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…

Just where would Manchester United be without Mason Greenwood? Forget the fact he has barely played for the club. The 17-year-old’s meteoric rise has seen him quickly become a silver lining amongst the storm that has engulfed Old Trafford. From years-old issues with the owners and Ed Woodward, to the horror showings on the pitch in recent months, Red Devils fans don’t have much to shout about. But in their teenage academy prospect, they have someone who is turning into a shining light in these dark times, protecting the realm from the toxicity that was spreading around Old Trafford.

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The forward struck the match-winner in an insipid 1-0 victory over FC Astana in the Europa League, and made it two goals from two starts when he fired home against a resilient Rochdale side in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night. In a game that exposed all of United’s turmoil, Greenwood was the sole individual the Old Trafford faithful could get behind. And boy did he deliver.

Per Whoscored, the teenager received the highest match rating of any player on the pitch and it’s easy to see why. Apart from his ice-cold finish in the second-half, Greenwood always sought to embrace the responsibility of trying to be his side’s hero, shouldering a huge attacking burden. By the end of the game, the 17-year-old had fired in seven shots at goal, of which four were on target.

Perhaps just as exciting for United is his decision-making. His five key passes were a game-high, and proved he is more than just a predatory finisher. Playing from the right-hand side, his ability to go both ways gives him considerable versatility in potentially playing a pass or shooting for goal.

Already, the attacker is proving he can be a handful for opposition defences in just his two starts this season. There will undoubtedly be tougher tests ahead than FC Astana and Rochdale, but his massive potential is already under-lining his status as a saviour for United.

Real Madrid probably hoped for a better game against Club Brugge at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Even though they managed to salvage a 2-2 draw, having fallen 2-0 behind, Real have just a point to their name after two Champions League matches.

But there are still plenty of games to be played and not all is lost just yet.

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One player that got the fans’ blood boiling, though, was, of course, Thibaut Courtois.

The former Chelsea star seemingly can’t catch a break with the Madridistas. They fumed at his performance against PSG and have vented similar anger after this disappointing European result too.

After conceding two goals versus Brugge, the Belgian was subbed off following the first 45 minutes and in came Alphonse Areola.

Zinedine Zidane stated the substitution was due to discomfort but the fans didn’t really care about the reason behind it.

Some of them were simply happy he was off and some even wished him a long recovery, but lots of them just want him either sold or dropped.

You can see some of the reactions and replies from Real Madrid fans on Twitter down below:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Off the Bench series, which places in-game managerial decisions and squad selections under FFC’s microscope.

QPR fell to their second successive defeat on Wednesday evening, following up Saturday’s 2-0 loss to West Brom by succumbing to a 3-0 scoreline against Cardiff.

Goals from Sean Morrison, Marlon Pack and Callum Paterson put the R’s to the sword, but perhaps Mark Warburton could have changed the outcome of the game with a slight tweak to his starting XI.

Snapshot

As aforesaid, QPR fell to a 3-0 defeat after goals from Morrison, Pack and Paterson.

The former had opened the scoring in the 11th minute with a header, after his centre-back partner Aden Flint headed the ball onto him.

The R’s played well despite the result – which slightly flatters Cardiff – having hit the woodwork twice through Eberechi Eze and Ryan Manning, while also having 72% of the possession and four more shots than their opponents.

Clearly though, defending resolutely enough to stop Cardiff maximising the chances they did create was a problem for Warburton’s side.

Conor Masterson should’ve started 

Since signing in the summer after leaving Liverpool, Conor Masterson hasn’t played a single minute of football for QPR.

The 21-year-old – a natural centre-back – was left on the bench against Cardiff with 34-year-old Geoff Cameron starting ahead of him, as Yoann Barbet and Grant Hall were missing.

Cameron, formerly of Stoke, performed poorly last time out against West Brom and, what with his age and the fact that the R’s had two games in the space of five days, Warburton should have been bold and dropped the experienced 55-cap international for a younger option.

With Barbet out due to suspension and Hall still not quite fit – they both look set to be ready for the Blackburn clash – what better time for Warburton to throw Masterson into the action for his first taste of first-team football at the club?

Blooding young players into the first-team can often be a thankless task, but the benefits from handing Masterson some game time would surely have been fruitful for QPR later down the line, as opposed to seeing a 34-year-old get more action, perform poorly and also have no more room for development.

Admittedly, it would have been a risk due to his lack of game time so far this term, but after Cameron delivered the performance that he did against the Baggies, it seems harsh not to have at least given the Irishman a chance.

Loads of Liverpool fans have reacted angrily to Danny Mills’ bizarre take on Jurgen Klopp’s position amongst the Liverpool greats.

Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley, Kenny Dalglish and Rafael Benitez – the list of great Liverpool managers is so long we had trouble choosing which four to include here.

That said, there is no question in the eyes of many Reds fans that Klopp is right up there amongst those legendary names, due mainly to the transformation the club has enjoyed during his time.

The former Borussia Dortmund boss has only managed two trophies in his reign, but the Reds were a shadow of their former selves when he arrived, and are now on a 17-match Premier League winning streak having been crowned kings of Europe after back to back Champions League finals.

Somehow though, that’s not enough for certain pundits, and Danny Mills has questioned the 52 year-old’s time on Merseyside based on the number of trophies he has won.

Not only does the talkSPORT pundit quote the incorrect number of trophies, forgetting the UEFA Super Cup, he also seems to have completely forgotten where the club stood when Klopp arrived, saying: “Four years, one trophy, is that enough?”

Unsurprisingly, Liverpool fans have been left raging at the former Manchester City man’s claim, and you can see some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

Joe Aribo has got off to a promising start to life at Rangers but he is enjoying life even more on the international stage.

Since making the summer switch to Scotland the midfielder has four goals and two assists in 16 games for Gers, but his form for Nigeria is where he is making a name for himself.

He has followed up a debut goal against Ukraine on Wednesday with a well-executed finish against Brazil, taking the ball past a defender with great skill before finding the bottom corner – a goal that he will likely remember for the rest of his life. The game ended 1-1, with Casemiro equalising for the Samba stars.

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It is some rise for the 23-year-old, who just four years ago was trying to make a professional career for himself at Staines Town.

He now has two goals in two games for his national team and his form hasn’t gone unnoticed by the Ibrox faithful, many of whom are delighted with the impact he is making.

They will hope he can take his goalscoring prowess into his club football in order to help Steven Gerrard’s side maintain their place at the top of the league, and it should certainly give him a confidence boost.

Here are some reactions from Rangers fans to his famous goal.